Re: Why?!

[Hamish Moffatt <hamish@debian.org>]

On Tue, Dec 22, 1998 at 08:18:33PM +0000, Martin Wheeler wrote:
> Mmmmm.  So you don't think that the total absence of Open Source Software
> products in the palmtop market (a la CE) -- not to mention the fact that
> not a single Smart Card as yet runs an OSS OS -- is significant in any
> way?

Is OSS well known enough yet to be trusted in the smart card market?
Banks and credit card vendors are very nervous organisations -- I wouldn't
expect them to adopt an OSS solution overnight.

> What will you do the day that you can't unlock the front door to your own
> house without an M$-powered smartcard device; or for that matter, even
> activate your workstation's keyboard without swiping an M$-manufactured 
> card through the security slot?  Hein?

I wouldn't worry too much about MS smart cards. I read an article in an
email journal the other day called "Mistaking the boat for a potato" or
some such. Most of MS's smart card interests are in network authentication,
rather than finance applications.


Hamish
-- 
Hamish Moffatt VK3TYD              hamish@debian.org, hamish@rising.com.au
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